When it comes to the biblical view of the nature and roles of men and women, there are two basic camps: egalitarians and complementarians. Both positions teach that man and woman are created equal in worth and dignity as creatures made in the image of God. However, egalitarians take that principle and conclude that therefore there is no distinction in role or hierarchy between the sexes in society, family, or the church. Complementarians, however, see that scripture lays out distinct roles for the sexes from creation and those roles are good and wise God-given gifts to help his creatures flourish.

Well folks, we are all familiar with the American Revolution of the 1700s. And that revolution dramatically shaped the country in which we all now enjoy and live in. But in the 1960s, another revolution broke out and its effects have also dramatically affected the American society, really the whole world today. It's known as the gender revolution. One historian that I read wrote the following, he said, the erasure of distinctions between the sexes is not only the most striking of our time, it may be the most profound the race, that is the race of mankind, has ever confronted.

Brothers and sisters, this is an issue that will touch every single one of us every single day of our lives. Therefore, we must be absolutely clear on what the Bible says and what it doesn't say about the sexes. Now, among professing Christians, generally one of two positions is held. Hopefully the notes are in the background, yep. On the one side of the spectrum is the complementarian view, and I'll tell you what that means in just a second, but it's also been called the traditional the hierarchical the patriarchal view and Personally, I don't really Care for any one of those terms because in my estimation they all carry a lot of baggage with them.

Now, on the other side of the spectrum is known as, or is called the egalitarian view, also known as the evangelical feminist view. Now, both sides of the aisle claim biblical support, so it's essential that we as believers carefully search the Word of God on this subject to truly know what it says and what it doesn't say. My heart's desire, dear brothers and sisters, no matter where you currently are on this spectrum, what side of the aisle that you're sitting in today, is that you will allow God's word to inform and if necessary, reform your thinking. Ladies, it's my sincere desire, please listen to me very loudly and clearly for all of you. It's my sincere desire that Christian women everywhere, and especially you all sitting here today, rejoice in your equality to men in status before God, and also at the same time, embrace your distinct and indispensable role within your marriage, the family, the church, and really society at large.

And guys, It's my sincere desire that Christian men everywhere and especially you brothers attending this conference today to be challenged not to thoughtlessly hold to either roles of men and women but rather that you would wholeheartedly embrace the unique role of leadership that God has designed for you to bear, once again, in the marriage, in the home, in the church, and in society. Now I've got a confession to make. You guys ready for this confession? Scott, are you ready for this confession? When Scott Brown asked me to teach on the topic of complementarianism versus egalitarianism, I was not very excited.

Brother, I don't know if you saw in my face or not. I personally I wanted a topic with more zing to it. I wanted something that would really matter for the men and women who came to this conference and all I have to say is sorry brother for my poor unbelieving attitude because after doing some thoughtful study I sincerely believe that this topic is hugely controversial and even more, if I could say it, hugely important to our day and age in which we now live. The gender debate is not some kind of abstract doctrinal controversy taking place only in the back rooms of Bible colleges and seminaries. Not at all.

This subject really touches on the very warp and woof of marriage, of family, the church, society, and I would say even of humanness itself. And folks, this controversy shows no sign of slowing down or going away. On the contrary, I believe it's here to stay for the long run. And today we're not going to be discussing the views held by non-believers. Guys, we hear that, right?

We hear that all day every day wherever we go. But I want us to briefly look at the tenets of each view held by so-called professing Christians. And then we'll spend the rest of our time looking at the teaching of what scripture says. So we'll start off with a couple definitions or a couple of views. Let me describe for you what we're talking about.

Again, on one side of the aisle is the egalitarian or evangelical feminist view. And that view says that God created, listen carefully, men and women equally to bear his divine design. Those who hold this view believe that equally bearing his divine image will be evidenced, and here's where the rub comes, by identical treatment in the home, identical treatment in the church, and identical treatment at society at large or in large. Hence the submission of a wife to her husband in the home is inconsistent, they say, with what the Bible teaches about their spiritual equality. Instead they teach something called mutual submission.

I remember hearing that phraseology even back at the Masters Seminary when I went to seminary back in 1995. And that says that that husbands and wives need to take turns submitting to one another. Furthermore, the egalitarian view believes that equality of the sexes requires equal ministry opportunities within the church. Leadership and teaching roles in the church should be based solely upon one's giftedness and not one's gender. The egalitarian considers the different but equal stance of the complementarians to be quite literally a contradiction in terms.

The Bible's statements on headship and submission have been, they believe, grossly misinterpreted by conservative Christians, both past and present today, and they hold that the literal, simplistic interpretation of those passages contradicts the Bible's teaching on gender equality, so we must, We need to interpret the Bible in a whole new way. Finally, egalitarians believe that male leadership of women is the direct result of sin entering into the world in Genesis chapter 3. In their view the gospel Jesus Christ though has restored the original equality of the sexes which they believe God had envisioned in Genesis 1 and 2 before the fall because they say according to Galatians chapter 3 there's neither what male nor female their favorite phrase that's kicked around the complementarian view, on the other hand, also teaches that God created both men and women equally in His divine image. Praise God. Right?

Genesis 1, 26-28. Hence, both complementarians and egalitarians assert that all genuine believers, whether male or female, are co-heirs of salvation and members of the body of Christ. There's absolutely no distinction in their worth or position in Christ. However, unlike egalitarians, Complementarians believe that God intentionally created men and women to fulfill distinct gender roles. And God designed these differences at the time of creation and are not the result of the fall.

Complementarians hold that when sin entered the world it disrupted God's design for harmonious male-female relationships and created a huge, huge battle between the sexes, one that's still raging even today. And furthermore, Satan has spent history doing what? Fanning those flames between the sexes by sowing seeds of discord and discontentment from one generation to the next. But despite the fall, and despite Satan's continual nefarious strategies, Christian men and women with the indwelling Holy Spirit in their hearts and God's unchanging word in their hands, right, can rediscover, they can embrace and live out God's design for both the man and the woman as God has originally designed. Amen?

I know you guys are a little bit tired today, but you guys can amen with me, okay? Thank you. Now having defined the two views, let's take a closer look at what the Bible actually teaches. There's no doubt that women have suffered horribly at the hands of men throughout history. Even in many biblical narratives, we read of women being sinned against in their marriages, in their homes.

And the sin against women, men, in my view, and I believe this with all my heart, is the sin against the God who created women in His image. So then why would anyone who truly knows and loves the Lord Jesus Christ, who has embraced the gospel, who is filled with the Holy Spirit, and who is sensitive to His holy word argue for role distinctions between men and women? And my simple answer is because Jesus did. And yet, we would never in our right minds think of accusing Jesus, who is God incarnate, our sin bearer, the very creator himself as being a misogynist or a male chauvinist, would we? On the contrary, he showed women just as much love and respect as he ever did to men.

Jesus Christ treated all women, even those who are considered to be the outcasts of society with purity, dignity, and respect. He communicated the gospel message to women with love and compassion just as he did to men. In turn, women followed him and they loved him And they felt free to approach him. Let me just give you a few passages. I wish we had more time.

Alright, just mark these down. You guys can study them later or look at them later. Matthew 20-20. Mark 10, 13-16. I don't know if I've got them written up there now.

Luke 8, 1 through 3. Luke 10, 38 through 42. In John chapter 11. If you need those, you can come to me later and I'll give them to you. Brothers and sisters, we need to walk as Jesus Christ walked, right?

The apostle John put it this way in his first epistle, in his first letter in 1 John 2, 6. He says, the one who says he abides in him ought himself to walk in the same manner as he walked. That is, those of us who claim to know and love the Lord Jesus Christ need to walk in the same manner as our Savior did. And Jesus taught that men and women were created equal but different. And by quoting the Old Testament passages that he did throughout his teaching, Jesus taught both gender equality and gender-based role distinctions.

The respect with which he treated women in no way contradicted the role that he sovereignly himself gave them at creation, right? And likewise the role that he gave them in no way decreased the honor with which he treated them. Now let's look at this together in Matthew chapter 19. Matthew chapter 19. Please turn your Bibles with me to Matthew chapter 19.

When Jesus was questioned by a delegation of religious Pharisees about divorce and remarriage, he quoted Genesis 1.27, and then he quoted Genesis 2.24 as God's authoritative answer to their question. Okay, and I know we're talking about divorce and remarriage here, that's what the original question was. But let's look at these verses together. It's found in Matthew 19, verses three, four, and five. Some Pharisees came to Jesus, testing him and asking, is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason at all?

And he answered and said, have you not read that he who created them from the beginning, male and female, and said for this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife and the two shall become one flesh." Now let's stop right there. When Jesus responded to the Pharisees, and I would put it like this, male-centered divorce practices, what did he appeal to? He appealed to the creation account Genesis 1 27 to help them understand God's purpose in creating the sexes in marriage. And this purpose is still true in our day. Friend, if we want to understand God's will for the sexes then we must follow our Lord's example, walk like he walked, and go back and appeal to the original Genesis creation account.

As one author put it, he said, other New Testament writers, especially Paul, follow Jesus' lead. Most of the important passages on men and women roles in the New Testament refer back either explicitly or implicitly to the first three chapters of Genesis. It's not possible to understand the New Testament teaching on men and women without understanding how It is founded on the creation of Adam and Eve, and on God's purpose as revealed in the creation of the human race." An excellent quote. And since Jesus, since Paul and Peter all affirm the truthfulness of the Genesis record and subsequently based their teaching, their gender role teachings on it, then I believe my dear brothers and sisters that we're on safe ground when we do the same thing. So being on safe ground when we do that, let's go ahead and together flip all the way back to the beginning of your Bibles, Genesis chapter 1.

What I want you to see from this very familiar passage is that God created men and women equal in His image. In verses 26, 27, and 28. Genesis chapter 1, verses 26 or 28. Then God said, let us make man in our image according to our likeness and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. God created the man in his own image.

In the image of God, he created him. Male and female, he created them. God blessed them, and God said to them, be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth. Now there's several points here. We could spend the rest of our time just right here, but there's several points quickly that I want you to note.

First, God created the human race with two sexually distinct human beings. Do you see that here? Is that clear? And he called his finished creation, we're not gonna, in verse 31, he said God saw all that he created it, and behold, it was very good. So he called all of this very good at the end of creation.

Second, in this short passage, it states three times that God created both the man and the woman in his image. Do you see that? He did it one time in verse 26, and he repeated it twice in verse 27, so three times. And thus, like God, both the man and the woman possess intellect, emotion, and will. That means that both men and women are able to think, feel and choose.

All right? Both the man and the woman also have eternal souls which never die. And the fact that they both bear God's image demonstrates that they are equal in dignity and worth in God's eyes, and they should also be treated with dignity and respect and honor as God's image bears. Now, there's a third thing. Both man and woman are equally necessary to God's design for the human race.

Guys, if you've been single for very long you know that that's true, right? He could have created both male and female humans with the capacity to reproduce themselves, correct? You can do anything he wants, but he didn't. God had a specific plan in mind when he created two sexually distinct but interdependent human beings. They were designed from their inception to complement each other in a beautiful interdependent relationship one with the other and God then commanded this man and this woman to multiply fill and rule over his creation over the earth and these mandates again were given to both of the sexes, for both bear equally the divine image, and neither one of them could do it alone.

People often say that it's a man's world out there. Have you guys ever heard something like that, some version of that? But in reality, it's God's world, is it not? It's God's world and He has created both the man and the woman to multiply, fill, and rule over it. And so far we've seen both equality and differences in this passage and now, a fourth thing, we begin to see some distinct roles emerging.

Look at verse 26 again with me. Notice that God named the human race man. He says, let us make man in our image. Now he's using the word man here in the sense of mankind or the human race. And this use of the word man is often called the generic use, including both male and females, right?

Both male and female humans. And what's noteworthy here is the fact that God himself chose to use the name of one of the sexes. He called the human race man to designate the whole human race. And he said something similar in Genesis chapter five. This is found in verses one and two.

He said this, this is the book of the generations of Adam, in the day when God created what? Man, he created him in the likeness of God, He created them male and female, and he blessed them and named them what? Man, in the day when they were created. One author put it like this, God's naming of the race man, and I like this, whispers male headship, which Moses will bring forward boldly in chapter 2 of Genesis. Now indeed, as we move into chapter 2, the whisper of the leadership role being given to the man becomes louder and even more clear.

Genesis chapter 2 is crucially important to our study at hand and I would even say that This is the battleground chapter between egalitarians and complementarians. It really is. It clearly reveals to us that God created the man to be the leader and the woman to be his helper and his support. I know that's not popular to say today, but let's examine the scriptures together and see what it says. Furthermore, this is the passage that Paul refers to when addressing the roles of men and women in Ephesians chapter 5 which unfortunately we don't have time to look at today but which is the New Testament premier chapter most comprehensive passage on this subject So let's look at a few key verses in this very key chapter.

And again, I'm gonna skip some verses, not because they teach something else, you can read them all for yourself if you'd like to, but simply for the sake of time. So let's look at Genesis 2, verse seven, and then we'll jump down to verse 15. Then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life. And man became a living being. Now jump down to verse 15.

Then the Lord God took the man, put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate and keep it. Lord God commanded the man saying, from any tree of the garden you may eat freely, but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die. Then the Lord God said, it is not good for the man to be alone. I will make him a helper suitable for him. Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the sky and brought them to the man to see what he would call them and whatever the man called a living creature that was its name.

Verse 20, the man gave names to all the cattle and to the birds of the sky and every beast of the field but for Adam there was not found a helper suitable for him. Praise the Lord, right? I know that Dog is man's best friend. Verse 21, so The Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept and he took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place. The Lord God fashioned into a woman the rib, which he had taken from the man and brought her to the man.

The man said, this is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh, she shall be called woman, because she was taken out of man. For this reason, excuse me, for this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh." Isn't that a beautiful account? Egalitarians believe that Genesis 2, they'll say, at least with their lips, they claim that it's fully inspired, but they say that the passage only teaches the quality of the sexes and deny that it has any further relevance to our topic at hand like headship submission but Genesis chapter 2 which is simply a more detailed account of the sixth day of creation found in Genesis chapter 1 actually presents six vital truths to understanding that God from the very beginning intended the man to lead. Let me give you those six vital truths. First we see here that God made Adam the central person of creation.

This entire chapter, including Adam's need for a spouse, surrounds the man, surrounds Adam. As a matter of fact, one Bible seminary professor wrote this, the male is given the name, the generic name, born by the human race as a whole, man, 2-5. The male is the one to whom God speaks in the narrative. Verse 16, 2-16. He is the first to receive divine revelation and instruction.

The animals are brought for naming to the man, 2 19, 2 20. The woman is made from the man, not the man from the woman, 2 22. The woman is also made for the man and brought to him, 2 18. Again, 2 22. Afterward, it is the man who speaks and makes a theological comment upon the woman's creation, verse 23.

It is the male who names the female. Again, verse 23. Thus viewed from every possible angle, he goes on to say this, the whole narrative in Genesis 2 is a story of how God created the man and provided in every way for His well-being. Somebody would probably get shot if they said that in the wrong place, at the wrong time nowadays. But that brings us right to our second point, and that is God created the man first.

This is a glaringly obvious point that Moses makes here, that Moses records for us. But don't overlook it. Don't disregard it as unimportant. Adam's prior creation has fundamental significance. And we don't have to simply guess at the significance because Paul himself mentions it for us in 1 Timothy chapter 2.

Do you remember that passage? 1 Timothy chapter 2 verses 12 and 13. I'll just read it for you. He says this, but I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet. Here it is.

For it is Adam who was first created and then Eve. Paul uses the fact of Adam's prior creation to demonstrate that the man, not the woman, bears the responsibility to lead and teach God's church, his family. Now think for a moment about all the responsibility given to Adam before God made Eve. This happened all before Eve was made, okay, and we read about it here in Genesis 2. Before Eve was formed, God placed the man in the garden to care for it.

In other words, he was given daily work and dominion. Before Eve was formed, God brought the animals to Adam for him to name. Again, we can call that dominion, he was given dominion. And before Eve was formed, God commanded Adam not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. In other words, he was given spiritual responsibility.

You see, God chose to make Adam first, to place responsibility on him and for a while at least a portion of one day to experience his aloneness, his incompletion, and in a sense and then to create a woman to fill that need. So ladies, this is not a denigration of the woman at all. Rather, it's an illustration that beautifully illustrates the truth that God created an interdependence between the man and the woman. And though the man is to lead, the woman is an integral, necessary, respected, and cherished part of his life. Amen?

For all you men who are happily married out there, and all you ladies. A third vital truth seen in Genesis chapter two is that Eve came from Adam. Now God could have created man and woman from two different lumps of clay, right? But he didn't. Rather, he formed Adam first from the dust of the ground, verse seven, and then in a creative act, more intimate than any other in the creation story except when he breathed life into Adam, right, God took one of Adam's ribs and formed the woman out of that rib.

Thus the woman's derivation from the man demonstrates not only equality nature, but also intimacy in her very design, but also difference, a difference in the roles. Now how do we know this? Once again, because the Bible tells us. Paul wrote the following to us in the Corinthians to the Corinthians he said this in 1st Corinthians 11 verse 8 he said for man does not originate for woman but what woman from man 1st Corinthians chapter 11 deals with the necessity for women to cover their heads while praying and prophesying, I believe, in the public worship assembly. And Paul bases his teaching all the way back to Genesis chapter 2 in the creation account.

Thus, the order of creation does matter. It really does. Now look at verse 18. We're still in Genesis chapter 2 where we find the fourth vital truth of Genesis chapter 2 Which is the fact that Eve was made for Adam Genesis 2 18 then the Lord God said is not good for the man to be alone I will make him a helper suitable for him. Here we see God declaring Adam's singleness as what?

What do you say? Not good. And some of you young single men out there need to be paying attention, okay? You need to be doing something about that fact. So what did God do?

He created a helper suitable for Adam. And who was this helper? Eve wasn't a dog. Eve wasn't a male. She wasn't a clone.

She was intimately similar to Adam, made from his very flesh and bone, but she was marvelously different as well. She had her own anatomy, she had her own physiology, she had her own psychology, she was not a she was not to clone man but she was to compliment him. Without her man could not carry out the mission God had given him. She was made to populate the earth with the man. And she was made to be His helper as He ruled the earth.

This, by the way, is the very first statement that we read in God's Word concerning the woman's role. She was created to be a help to the man. God made Eve not only to help fulfill the command given to both of them to multiply and fill the earth but also for the purpose of helping Adam with the work that he had already previously given to him. Now the Hebrew word for helper is the word kenegdo and it means a helper corresponding to him one that is equal and adequate to him so when God says I will make a helper for him he meant that he would make by special order, someone tailor suited, tailor fit, right, to stand by him, support him, help him, compliment him, and, and, and. And please note that God gave woman this role before the fall, this is crucial, not because of the fall.

Men and women, it's important for us to understand that the curse brought a distortion of the previous roles, not an introduction of new ones. And we'll get to that when we get to Genesis chapter three. Now the fifth truth to notice in Genesis two is that God gave the man the right to name the woman. Look at verses 22 and 23 with me. It's kind of like a theological teaching as I'm thinking about this.

Are you guys still awake with me? You guys still okay? Good. Take another sip of your coffee and let's Buckle up, okay? Verses 22 and 23 says, The Lord God fashioned into a woman the rib which he had taken from the man and brought her to the man.

The man said, This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. She shall be called woman because she was taken out of man. Now, woman was a generic term, not a personal name. Do you guys get that? It was a generic term, not a personal name.

In Genesis chapter 3, Adam also gave his wife her personal name Eve in verse 20. You can see that there. Now it's important to realize that the one who names another has both the right and the authority to do so. For example, God brought all the animals to Adam and gave him the right to name them, which he did, verses 19 and 20. Parents also have been given the right and the authority to name their children.

I love doing that with my children. What a blessing it was. And so the fact that Adam named Eve indicates that God had given Adam the role of authority in their relationship. Now there's one more thing that I don't want you to miss as we're moving right along here in Genesis chapter two. God created the man and the woman not only equal in bearing his image but also equal in their very nature.

It has been said that God did not create Eve from Adam's head, what, to be his ruler, right? You've all heard this before. Nor did he create Eve from Adam's foot to be tread upon by him, but in God's infinite wisdom he created Eve from Adam's rib over his heart to be cherished by him, and under his arm to be protected by him. When God brought the woman to Adam, he immediately recognized that she shared his same nature. And upon seeing her, he said, this is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.

What a glorious thing to say. Really. Now so far we've looked at Genesis 1 where God created the man and the woman equal in his image. We've looked at Genesis chapter 2 where God created the man and woman as equals yet with differences, and that's the whole point here, right? Four different roles.

And now as we come to Genesis 3, we come to the reason why this is even an issue for men and women today. Folks, do you realize that all the problems that we face, listen very carefully, all the problems that we face in this lifetime, in this world, spiritually, ethnically, culturally, and even between the two sexes have their origin right here in Genesis chapter 3. Adam and Eve were both created in a state of untested holiness as my late theology professor Dr. Trevin Kragren used to always say. God placed them in the Garden of Eden, perfect environment, and gave them the freedom to eat from any tree of the garden except one, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

And God warned them in Genesis chapter 2 verses 16 and 17 that the day that they ate from it, they would surely die. Well, you know how the story went. Adam and Eve disobeyed and ate of the forbidden fruit, they died spiritually that day and had to leave God's presence immediately. They also began dying physically that day and their disobedience and resulting judgment is called the fall. And my oh my, what a fall it was.

So Genesis chapter three explains the origin of pain, of toil, of agony, of sin, of sickness, and of death. And it also explains why there's so much conflict between the sexes. Now let's quickly read a portion of this account. Again, I'm not going to give you all the verses, but some of them that are crucial. Okay, so let's look at Genesis 3 1.

And now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, indeed has God said you shall not eat from any tree of the garden. I say a whole lot about that, but let's skip down to verse 6. When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate, and gave also to her husband with her, And he ate. Verse 9.

Then the Lord God called the man and said to him, Where are you? Verse 16. To the woman he said, now going to the curses, right? I will greatly multiply your pain in childbirth and pain you will bring forth children yet your desire will be for your husband and he will rule over you then the Adam he said because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you saying you shall not eat from it curse it is the ground because of you and toil you eat it eat of it all the days of your life, both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face you will eat bread till you return to the ground, because from it you are taken, for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.

Now those who hold to an egalitarian view of the Bible insist that Genesis chapter three is the very first time, the very first Indication where the concept of headship and submission is introduced and you can see why they would do that However those who hold to a complementarian view of the sexes, like myself, disagree with all of our might, right? Seeing the different roles of leader and helper in both Genesis chapter one and two, like we just saw. Thus the fall did not introduce the different roles that God gave to men and women, it merely corrupted them. We see this in three different ways. First, we see it in the deception of Eve.

Satan just didn't roll the dice one day and decide to tempt Eve, right, in the garden. No way. He purposely went after the woman who was to be the helper because he knew that she would be more susceptible to his deceptions. And later in verse 13 Eve even said to herself that she was deceived. She said it out of her own lips, I was deceived.

And in 1st Timothy chapter 2, the Apostle Paul said that she was deceived, right? If that wasn't good enough from her own mouth, Paul said it centuries later. Adam, on the other hand, wasn't deceived, but went through with the disobedience fully knowing that what he was doing was wrong. This is one theologian put it, he said, the fall is therefore not only the rebellion of mankind against God, but the setting aside of the divinely appointed order of male and female. Now, there in the moment of temptation, as Eve was deceived by the devil, Adam abdicated his role as a spiritual leader.

Do you see that here? What should he have done? Well, he should have reminded his wife of God's command, right then and there. He should have corrected the untruths that Satan was spewing forth and telling his wife. Third, he should have placed his love and discernment between his wife and the tempter and begged her to trust God, not the snake.

Right? But instead he laid aside his role of leader and walked open-eyed into sin with her. Guys, how many of us do the same thing? Right? How many of us do the same thing today?

Now look with me at the havoc their sin produced in their marriage. After Eve sinned, God punished her by telling her that she would suffer pain in the role of mother and wife. This is key. The first part of the curse relates to the woman's role as mother. Look at verse 16, the first part.

It says, I will greatly multiply your pain in childbirth. In pain you will bring forth children. My wife has had 14 children, 14 pregnancies. Was it painful? Yes, it was.

The second part of her curse would affect her relationship with her husband. Do you realize that? Ladies, this is the second part of that same verse, verse 16. It says this, yet your desire will be for your husband and he will rule over you. Now here, right here, we see the very first hint of trouble between the man and the woman.

The first hint. This is where friction began in the roles between men and women. Instead of contentedly following his leadership and supporting his mission, the woman will now be tempted to covet his role, his position, and he will be tempted to rule with an iron fist instead of tenderly leading her. And it's important to Note that neither of these temptations will ever fully be removed until the Lord comes back. Guys, gals, do you realize that?

Not for a single moment, okay? But the good news is, is that When the Holy Spirit indwells us, He enables the believer to greatly minimize the aspect of the curse as we walk in obedience to Him from His word. Now there's one more thing that clearly demonstrates the differences and roles here in Genesis chapter 3 and that is Adam's curse and I am purposely not looking at the time right now okay so I always feel better if I don't know what time it is. Some of you preachers out there know what I'm talking about, right? After the fall, God sought out Adam first for an explanation.

Do you realize that? See that in verse 9. The leader was responsible for what had happened. The buck stopped with him. God's curse on Adam went to the core of his being as a man.

What's the core of his being? Well, his work. Ask any man, ladies. Ladies, you need to be encouragement to your husbands, okay? Please, in their area of work, whatever they do, encourage them, be interested in it, listen to them, because that's a part of their core, their being, and his ability to provide sustenance for his family.

So that's where the curse went for the man. And as we've already seen in the wording of the woman's curse, with a fall came the distortion of the man's God-given role of authority and the woman's God-given role of support. And that's where the battle of the sexes began, where male chauvinism and women's liberation were born. Ever since the fall, women have had a sinful inclination to usurp male authority, to buck male authority, to kick it off, cast it aside, however you want to explain it. And men, at the same time, have had a sinful inclination to suppress and dominate women.

Just look at the cultures all around us today. And really the only place where it's somewhat peaceful for a woman is in the cultures where Christianity has come and has planted roots, right? Really. So what now? As we land this plane, what's the answer to this battle?

My dear brothers and sisters, the answer is the gospel. The answer is the gospel. Listen carefully, Jesus suffered, He died, He was buried, He rose again on the third day for all of our sins, including the sins that men have committed against women and ladies the sins that women have committed against men. Beloved this is key because the gospel provides for forgiveness and healing of the crucial injustices done by men and women against each other. Friend, perhaps you struggle with the biblical roles because you grew up seeing those roles abused.

As a pastor, I've heard that many times. But just because sinful men and sinful women have abused this doctrine does not make it any less biblical. The doctrine of different but equal between the sexes is rooted in God's infinite wisdom and his sovereign design for the sexes in the human race. And when it's applied in love, it reflects God's beauty and his love for both the sexes. When the home is weakened, as we've heard said yesterday multiple times, all societies weaken.

Do we see that around us today? We see it all around us. Knowing this, Satan continues to mastermind, listen carefully, the blurring, things are really blurry today, aren't they? The removal and the reversal of all distinctions between men and women. He's a mastermind, and he's doing that more and more and more and more and more.

Unfortunately, much of the so-called church has fallen prey to this satanic philosophy and is now willing to recognize the agendas of both the feminists and the homosexuals. Who would have guessed? Both of which are tragic twistings of God's design for the sexes. Thus the church is reaping a whirlwind of confusion, disorder, immorality, and apostasy that is unparalleled by past generations. Just ask your father, men, or your grandfather, if he's still around, right?

Or his father. Since families are the building blocks of society, a society that does not actively protect and promote the family actually undermines its own existence. It's placing TNT at all the right places for the destruction, the bringing down of that building. I mean, you remember the collapse of the World Trade Centers and how they just fell into each other? That's what's happening.

It's almost that fast too in the American society. And when the family disappears, anarchy is the logical outcome. So my dear brothers and sisters, more than ever before is a time for the church to declare and even more importantly to put on display for all to see what the Bible actually teaches. God's standard for marriage and the family is the only standard that can produce lasting order, fulfillment and joy for both men and women. Men and women are beautifully different by God's sovereign design.

And Paul in Ephesians chapter five tells us to live out our different roles with love and respect for one another, showcasing God's design for marriage and the love between Christ and his bride, the church. That's the picture there. And this relationship between a Christian husband and wife is meant to be as beautiful it's meant to be as intricate as intimate as a complicated dance a dance in which the man leads, the woman follows, and both rejoice in each other's closeness and differences to the glory of our great God, amen? Let's pray together. Oh Lord, as we see our society casting off really what our forefathers put in place with biblical Christianity so long ago, and we see the demise of our society caving in all around us Lord we understand that the only answer is to return back to what your word says Lord have a clear exposition of what the design was originally intended in Genesis chapter 1, 2, and 3.

Understand that because of the fall, things have been distorted, but because of the gospel of Jesus Christ, things can be restored. Maybe not perfectly in this lifetime, Lord, but as close as possible. And I pray that, Lord, where we have let go of our high view of male leadership and our high view of a woman and her role. Lord, I pray that each one of us would repent and I pray that we'd embrace your design for your glory, your honor and your praise. We pray these things in Jesus' name.

Amen.